The scales have tipped. Now, I’ve lived longer in San Diego than I’ve lived in my home state of Massachusetts. I could say that I came to San Diego because I was searching for myself, or to further my education, or to start a new career. The truth is I left because I hated the weather. My search was for sunshine, and I found that in San Diego.
A few weeks ago, my daughter and I spent part of her college spring break in Massachusetts. We started at the NY/MA border and drove to Boston. Even in late March, Mother Nature kept her reputation intact. In the span of five days, the first one was sunny, the middle ones were rainy, and the last day we had snow. But I didn’t go back to complain about the weather, I went back to show my daughter my roots and was surprised to see some new places too.
Highlights of the trip included:
– My history: we stopped in the Berkshires to see where I spent one year of my life at The Bible Speaks. The property is now occupied by Shakespeare & Company. I could write a whole blog on the irony of actors performing there. The photo below is one of the abandoned administration buildings.
– American History: Further east, we visited Stockbridge to see the Norman Rockwell museum. My daughter and I loved the exhibition of Norman Rockwell’s “Saturday Evening Post” covers. He was a master of capturing the American spirit. We felt very patriotic after our visit. The photo below shows the artist’s love of children and their dog in his work.
– World History: The New England Holocaust Memorial was on the route from our hotel to Faneuil Hall. Almost daily, we walked passed this memorial. The first time we approached it, we weren’t sure what it was. Six glass towers illuminated from within reach into the sky. Steam rises from grates in the ground. As we walked through, we understood the significance of the number six: the number in millions of Jews killed in the Holocaust, the six main death camps, the number of years of the “Final Solution.” But most haunting are the six million numbers etched in the glass (like the tattoos on prisoners’ arms). Very poignant. The photo below is taken from the site http://www.nehm.org/
– Live Theater: I found the half-price ticket booth in the same location it was thirty years ago and bought tickets to see “Shear Madness” at the Charles Playhouse. It was a blast. Even though it is one of the longest running shows in Boston, it still felt fresh and fun to us. If you like interactive theater, you’ll love this show.
We got our fix of local food like chowdah and lobstah and great Italian food in the North End. We walked part of the Freedom Trail, through Harvard, and visited several museums. Last but not least, our hotel was around the corner from the Boston Garden (I refuse to call it TD Garden). Just our luck, the Bruin’s played twice while we were there. On the game they lost, all we heard was “Those f’ing losahs” and on the day they won, “What an f’ing game.” I think you get the point. Boston is a city of many flavors.
